Riga TechGirls: the market needs ready-made IT-specialists
The world of high-tech is rapidly developing, and now the market is experiencing an acute shortage of qualified IT specialists. It is not enough just to have a diploma; it is necessary to have certain skills, the list of which is becoming longer every year. According to Anna Andersone, an expert of the Riga TechGirls company, the IT specialists will be in great demand at least for the next 5 years. First of all, we are talking about programmers, data analysts, and people who work with technologies of artificial intelligence and machine learning.
According to the forecast of the Ministry of Economy, by 2025 the Latvian market will experience a shortage of about 20 thousand IT specialists. It is a huge figure that needs to be compensated already now. As part of the solution, Riga TechGirls proposes to motivate young people to study information technology. The company has already organized IT courses. At the same time, Andersone notes that the 3-month courses are not enough to become competitive in the labor market and are useful to employers. The main task of such training is to provide a basis and help to understand whether the direction of IT suits a particular person. And later it is necessary to continue to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to become an expert in a particular field.
Anna notes that the shortage of technical specialists is very serious, so it will not be possible to solve the problem solely by the number of university graduates. It is necessary to attract people from other professions, train them and provide the necessary springboard for further development in this field.
Riga TechGirls focuses primarily on women. The company wholeheartedly supports girls who start an IT career. According to the official data, the share of women in the technological sphere of the country is about 30%, and most of them are employed in communication or personnel spheres. As a result, there are far fewer female technical specialists.
According to Anderson, if a company’s IT department doesn’t have female employees, it’s a big disadvantage for business development. A diverse workforce allows you to look at the problem from different angles and find the perfect solution. And this is true not only in terms of gender but also in terms of age. In addition, the IT sphere has no limitations, and both a young woman and an elderly man can become successful here. The main thing is to have a desire and to study regularly.
The technology sector is developing very rapidly, and to stay useful it is necessary to improve the skills, get new ones, and follow the trends and innovations. This is the only way to be competitive and qualify for a promising and highly paid position. In addition to the professionals themselves, employers must also invest resources in employee development. A number of companies have educational programs, with benefits for training courses and free attendance at master classes and conferences.
